Fit to be Dead

Aggie Mundeen Mystery #1

by Nancy G. West

Lefty Award Finalist for Best Humorous Mystery.
Chanticleer Award Winner (Mystery&Mayhem category)

WRY HUMOR AND A CLEVERLY WOVEN MYSTERY

Aggie Mundeen, single and pushing forty, fears nothing but middle age. When she moves from Chicago to San Antonio, she decides she better shape up before anybody discovers she writes the column, “Stay Young with Aggie.” She takes Aspects of Aging at the University of the Holy Trinity and plunges into exercise at Fit and Firm. Rusty at flirting and mechanically inept, she irritates a slew of male exercisers, then stumbles into murder. She’d like to impress the attractive detective with her sleuthing skills. But when the killer comes after her, the health club evacuates semi-clad patrons, and the detective has to stall his investigation to save Aggie’s derriere.

Genres: Mystery, Cozy Mystery, Cozy, Humor, Amateur Sleuth, Mystery Thriller, Fiction

336 pages, ebook

First published March 15, 2012

About the author

Multi-award-winning mystery writer, James W. Siskin, says Risky Pursuit is one of the great books of fiction he’s read recently (Dec. 11. 2025).

MEET DECKER IN THE THRILLER, RISKY PURSUIT! .

How far would you go to save the people you love?

———————————————————————

Nancy LOVED writing RISKY PURSUIT about courageous Decker Savage.

Nancy G. West was a business major who switched to English lit for grad school and found that writing stories was a lot more fun than accounting.
She writes about ordinary adults and teens faced with danger who must find the courage to save themselves and their loved ones.
She paused writing her Aggie Mundeen Rom-Com Mysteries to write the book she absolutely had to write: RISKY PURSUIT.

BookBub recommends RISKY PURSUIT!

Many thanks to readers for the great reviews and for voting Risky Pursuit #1 in Best YA Book That Anyone Would Enjoy, #1 Best YA Summer Thriller, #1 in Great YA/Indie Books, and #1 Best Children/Teen/Young Adult books.
Goodreads' voting lists are at the bottom of the Risky Pursuit page.

PUBLISHER DESCRIPTION
High school senior Decker Savage, burdened by his baby brother’s death and dreading his parents’ impending divorce, sees his mother with a scruffy stranger and follows him to a dark house. He hears shouts upstairs, a man hits the floor, and the culprit escapes.
Decker follows the victim’s ambulance. Through their mutual love of baseball, they become friends; but the elderly man can’t remember who attacked him, and Decker fears the assailant will return.
His grades crater, his relationships go south, his baseball skills are erratic, and by entering the man’s house, he broke the law.
And things are about to get worse.
He suffers anonymous attacks and receives threatening notes: if he doesn’t forget the man and the house, he, his family, and his friend will be the next victims.
Can Decker uncover the culprit’s identity, solve the mystery, and stop the attacks?

Grief, loss, love, courage, forgiveness, reconciliation, redemption - in this thriller for adults and young adults. .

Ebook is on sale until January 5.


OTHER BOOKS BY Nancy G. West

AWARD-WINNING
AGGIE MUNDEEN ROM-COM MYSTERIES

Single, past thirty and fearless, Aggie’s curiosity and amateur sleuthing draw her into investigations that jeopardize her life and frustrate her favorite San Antonio Detective. Every book in the series either won or was nominated for an award.

FIT TO BE DEAD-health club fiasco
DANG NEAR DEAD-dude ranch disaster
SMART, BUT DEAD-academics can be murder
RIVER CITY DEAD-a River Walk romp


NEW SPIN-OFF SERIES

AGGIE MUNDEEN LAKE MYSTERIES

THE PLUNGE #1`
Aggie & Sam plan a quiet weekend at a lakeside cottage and are caught in a 500-year flood that changes them and propels them in new directions.

__________________


Website: www.nancygwest.com
Facebook.com/authorNancyG.West
Twitter:@NancyGWest_

From Nancy:
I've been writing since age seven: poems back and forth with my mom. At age fifteen, I had a poem published in the Library Journal, Pegasus, At eighteen, I wanted to study journalism and English literature, but friends who chose that college route made minimum wage or sold lingerie. Being practical, I earned a business degree. After marriage and two children, I decided I HAD to study literature and write. I earned an MA, English Literature, and wrote non-fiction articles, a biography, and a suspense novel about a young grad student, Meredith Laughlin, in Nine Days to Evil, Agge Mundeen popped up in Meredith's class, popped into my head, and demanded her own series.

NEW Adult/YA thriller, April 2025: RISKY PURSUIT

Reviews

[megHan · Rating 3 out of 5]

I received a copy of this book in exchange for an unbiased review during the blog tour. No other consideration was offered, expected or received.

I am a huge lover of mysteries (one of my favorite genres, my favorite sleuth being Agatha Christie's Hercule Poirot) and am always looking to find new ones to try. When I read the description on this one - and saw that it was set in the city that I live in - I thought this could be a great read. I was right and wrong.

I was expecting a light mystery, one that I could just breeze through, the kind of book most people consider "summer reading." What I got was a cute mystery. I mean, it was cute - I did get my bit of light reading and breezed through the story quite quickly - but when I was telling my mom about it, she said "Mysteries aren't supposed to be cute," and I agree with her there.

After the incident in the pool on the day Aggie starts at Fit and Firm, I was interested to find out what was going to happen next and kept reading. It got even more interesting after the murder. There were some funny parts too. But I felt like I was reading a romance that was trying to disguise itself as a mystery novel - and was trying too hard to be cute and funny. I actually thought this was just me - I'm not really a fan of the romance genre - but when I sat down to write this review, having no idea where to start or what to even say, I took a look at some of the other reviews to see if other people felt the same way that I did, and there were a few that did.

I think my major issue with the book was Aggie herself. I didn't like her, from the very first pages. She cared too much about looks and came across, at least in my opinion, as an unhappy know-it-all who constantly wanted all attention on her. I also felt like she "played dumb" to get guys to notice her, something I just can't stand. I found myself wanting to know what was going to happen to the other characters - a few I really got into - and not really caring to find out more about her.

I do plan to read book #2, though. I'm curious to see how things progress and if she matures any as the series goes on. I may like her more if she does.

[LORI CASWELL · Rating 4 out of 5]

Aggie Mundeen, single and pushing forty, fears nothing but middle age. When she moves from Chicago to San Antonio, she decides she better shape up before anybody discovers she writes the column, “Stay Young with Aggie.” She takes Aspects of Aging at University of the Holy Trinity and plunges into exercise at Fit and Firm.

Rusty at flirting and mechanically inept, she irritates a slew of male exercisers, then stumbles into murder. She’d like to impress the attractive detective with her sleuthing skills. But when the killer comes after her, the health club evacuates semi-clad patrons, and the detective has to stall his investigation to save Aggie’s derriere.

Dollycas’s Thoughts

This story takes place in 1997 as Angie has left behind the stressful banking life in Chicago and has moved to San Antonio. She has enrolled in Graduate School and writes the Staying Fit With Angie column. Sam Vanderhoven has also moved from Chicago to San Antonio where he is a detective with the SAPD. He moved there about a year before Angie after losing his wife and child in a terrible accident.

Angie Mundeen is a very engaging character who has had some heartache in her life and she has a secret. A secret that is trying to desperately keep from her friend Sam, who could become more than just a friend.

Angie is well past the age of 30 and her body is out of shape, not a good thing for someone writing about keeping fit. She decides to join a gym to lose some weight and gain some muscle tone and life just gets crazy from there. Within moments of entering the gym she finds an unconscious woman floating in the pool.

From there the author pens an entertaining mystery. Nancy G. West has a great sense of humor, this book is really funny. Angie’s interactions with the people at gym are hilarious as she learns to use the equipment at the gym. Blended with the humor are fantastic clues that help solve the mystery with some very interesting twists.

My only negative critique would be that more groundwork needs to be laid regarding Angie’s column. Readers see her receive the letters and write her advice but we need to know where and how they are published.

West has laid a foundation with these characters that can lead to a very enjoyable cozy mystery series. I hope she meets Mr. Pilates in the next installment.

[Sara Bartlett · Rating 2 out of 5]

Too silly and unbelievable from beginning to end.

[Angie Goodwin-Rendon · Rating 4 out of 5]

I am pleasantly surprised. I picked up this book at a local book festival and had a chance to speak with the author. This is not my usual type of book. Yes. it's far-fetched but it was fun. It kept me guessing, made me laugh. I found the characters of Aggie funny. I look forward to reading more of her!

[Sapphyria · Rating 4 out of 5]

Fit to be Dead takes place in San Antonio, Texas in 1997. Executive banker, Agatha Mundeen, quit her job in Chicago and moved to Texas, behind one of her dearest friends, Detective Sam Vanderhoven. He was married to a very good friend of Aggie's, Katie, but unfortunately, Katie and their adopted daughter were killed. Aggie has developed an attraction to Sam that has gradually grown over time. She enrolled in grad school and is also the columnist behind "Stay Young with Aggie." Aggie decides that it's time to practice what she preaches and checks out the local fitness center, Fit & Firm Health Club.

Shortly after walking through the door - she's not even a member yet - she finds a young woman, named Holly, face down in the pool. After extracting her and calling for help, Aggie comes to the conclusion that the accident may not have been an accident at all. Her suspicions are confirmed when unusual and highly dangerous events keep happening at the Club.

Aggie is determined to help figure out why Holly, and now herself, are being targeted. Aggie decides to start by doing some undercover investigations involving the Club regulars. Her curiosity raises some eyebrows and instead of being focused solely on Holly, who survived the pool incident, Aggie may also be a target now - for reasons unknown. Aggie had just met Holly and the only thing she really knew about her was that she'd recently given a baby up for adoption.

Holly's secret baby isn't the only revelation. As Aggie investigates, she ends of finding out a lot about the male patrons she's spying on and unearthing some secrets that apparently aren't suppose to be known. After Holly is killed in a hit-and-run in the Club parking lot, the actions toward Aggie intensify.

Fit to Be is a humorous cozy mystery that takes the reader all over the place. There are different threads to the craziness that don't seem to be connected and then all of a sudden something happens or is said and everything falls into place. I enjoyed the plot and character development; the world building was done well. We were given the important back story information on the main characters in just the right dosage - not too much, not too little. We also learn that Aggie harbors a secret that she's held tight for several years. A secret that could destroy the relationship that Aggie has with Sam. A secret that is expertly woven in with the rest of the tale.

Aggie is 30+ and is not physically fit. Her humorous attempts to use the different machines in the Club had me laughing out loud. I'm also 30+ (not 40 yet but I'm closer to 40 than I am to 30) and while I'm thin, I'm not physically fit. My husband and I purchased gym memberships at the beginning of 2014. I hadn't a clue how to use anything - not even the treadmill. I almost feel like the scene where Pete shows Aggie how to use the items in the weight room mirrors my husband trying to show me how to use the machines and such in our gym for the first time. I love that I can relate to Aggie on that level.

I enjoyed Fit to be Dead. It's a quick and easy read that keeps the reader engaged from for the first page. There is humor, sadness, suspense, and tragedy - a little something for everyone who loves a good cozy mystery.

Review copy courtesy of the author, at no cost, in exchange for an honest review.

[Pamela · Rating 2 out of 5]

Fit To Be Dead is the first book in the Aggie Mundeen mystery series. This is it's second release, this time by Henery Press.

I had a very hard time trying to read this novel. The main character didn't appeal to me at all; she was erratic, rambling and narcissistic. There was a large number of secondary characters with tragic backgrounds. So many that I had a hard time keeping them straight.

The plot jumped around and the writing was disorganized. Basically, this novel tries too hard to be cute and funny, but fails badly.

Unfortunately, I can't recommend this book.

ARC provided by the publisher via Netgalley.

[Glenda · Rating 5 out of 5]

It's a trifecta: humor, San Antonio setting, charming local author.

[Catherine Hayward · Rating 5 out of 5]

My boyfriend’s grandma wrote this gem - I just love cozy muder mysteries like this! The intentional silly story line is written with great wit. A lighthearted, happy read.

[OpenBookSociety.com · Rating 4 out of 5]

http://openbooksociety.com/article/fi...

Brought to you by OBS guest reviewer JoAnne

Aggie Mundeen is a single woman who has left her bank job (after investing a tidy amount) and moved to San Antonio, Texas, to be near the only real friend she has, her police detective friend Sam. Sam was married to Aggie’s friend Katie, but after she died, he moved to San Antonio to start again. Aggie is interested in Sam in a more-than-friendly way, but hasn’t said anything to him, wanting to see if he feels the same way about her.

Aggie is taking classes at the local university in aspects of aging. Aggie, it seems, is terrified of getting old, and is willing to do anything to delay that process. Even if it fit-to-be-dead-nancy-g-westmeans joining a health club, which she reluctantly does. (Reluctantly, because she doesn’t like to exercise). On her first visit, she decides to use the pool, and when she gets in, there is a young woman apparently dead or dying. She pulls her from the pool and the paramedics are called. When the young woman, Holly, recovers, she starts blurting things out, and Aggie discovers that Holly had a child she recently gave away and now regrets. Before Aggie can find out any more, Holly bolts.

Soon after, Holly is run over by a car and killed. Aggie suspects it wasn’t an accident, nor the “accident” at the pool, and decides to find the killer herself, because she figures that it will impress Sam and he will like her enough to want to be with her (I have no idea why she thinks this, but you soon find out Aggie’s mind is kind of warped on some things). She also knows if she mentions anything to Sam about Holly being murdered, he will tell her to stay out of the investigation. So, when Aggie starts to nose around, things begin to happen – to her. Yet does she give up the investigation? No. Does she tell Sam? No. She plunges forward, even involving her friend Meredith; Without telling Meredith what she’s really doing, of course.

I felt the beginning of the book was slow, when Aggie was sick. (Let’s just say nothing she ate would stay where she originally put it). Anyway, as things progressed, the book definitely got better. And, in fact, there were some flat out funny scenes that made me laugh out loud. An especially funny one that included the members of the health club.

As we get closer to the murderer (and the person who was making the attempts on Aggie’s life), things get twisted. So twisted, that you could be driving down that road in San Francisco and it would be more direct. Subplots wove in and out of the main one – which was to find Holly’s killer – and you couldn’t find closer connections if you were knitting an afghan. Yet the clues weren’t easy to spot (and even if I did, I never made the connections myself – mainly because it didn’t appear that there were any). Everything that was supposed to be a clue, panned out to be something else entirely. But the clues are there. Just don’t give yourself a headache looking for them. Even Aggie’s story was woven into all the others – and she does have a story, true enough; and I found it interesting how everything tied together.

An easy read, enjoyable; recommended for anyone who likes mysteries with a bit of humor thrown in.

[Jane Reads · Rating 3 out of 5]

I liked Fit to be Dead, the first book in the Aggie Mundeen Mystery series. Author Nancy G. West has created some interesting, quirky characters, and she puts them through one hilarious situation after another. The main characters are Aggie Mundeen herself (I'll bet you knew that), her friend Meredith Laughlin, and attractive detective Sam Vanderhoven.

The only weakness in Fit to be Dead is the implausibility of Aggie's reasons for sleuthing. Aggie thinks that she, an untrained civilian, can detect better than the SAPD. I thought this shows that she has a lack of respect for law enforcement officers, which is surprising since she has secret romantic notions about Sam. Because of this, I deducted one star from my rating.

I look forward to reading the second Aggie Mundeen Mystery book, Dang Near Dead, which will be re-released by Henery Press on 9/30/14. I am betting that Aggie's grounds for sleuthing are more logical this time. But will she let Sam know how she feels about him???

Fit to be Dead is an enjoyable cozy mystery, with appealing, engaging characters. The health club setting will amuse anyone who has ever felt awkward or inept as a "newbie" to fitness equipment. I liked it, and I think you will like it too!



[Fascinating Side Note: As I was reading Fit to be Dead, several times I noticed brief references to past events involving Aggie with Meredith and/or Sam. Because of this, I felt like I was missing something.

I did a little detecting of my own, and discovered that I was missing something. Fit to be Dead is not the first book that Aggie, Meredith, and Sam have appeared in. They first appeared in Nine Days to Evil, a suspense novel in which Meredith is the main character.

Author Nancy G. West says that, while she was writing Nine Days to Evil,

That's when whimsical Aggie Mundeen cut through the suspense, popped into my head and demanded her own series. The Aggie Mundeen mystery capers were born.

I immediately put Nine Days to Evil on my TBR. I look forward to reading it, so I can learn their back-stories.]



Note: I received a complimentary review copy of Fit to be Dead from the publisher, with no expectation of a positive review.

Originally published on my blog at www.JaneReads2.blogspot.com

[Diana Hockley · Rating 5 out of 5]

REVIEW OF FIT TO BE DEAD
Aggie Mundine has retired from a banking career which she loathed, describing herself as a “squirrel counting nuts.” Having reached over thirty – it is hinted, not yet forty – she moves to Texas, where she plans to continue answering letters to her column, “Adventures in Staying Young” and contemplate what else to do. Realising that she’d better look young in case someone sees her less than sylph-like self and discovers she is the author, Aggie joins a health club where she inadvertently stumbles across an attempted murder on her first visit.

This novel was a delight to read. Some readers would deem it a “cozy” but it goes much deeper. The reader gradually discovers that Aggie is hiding a heartbreaking secret, one which she would rather the man whom she hopes will eventually return her affection, Detective Sam Vanderhoven, would rather not find out.

In spite of Aggie’s confident exterior, she is lonely and looking for love. Her column keeps her motivated to attend Aspect of Aging at the University of The Holy Trinity and exercising at the health club gives her a rather unfortunate glimpse of the singles scene. When her curiosity gets the better of her and sleuthing takes over, in Aggie’s words, “underneath this veneer of healthy living, repressed fury was biding its time.”

The characters are everyday and totally believable. Aggie comes across as a very attractive woman (the men address her chest) Sam is extremely likable with appalling fashion sense and the gym bunnies are right on target.

N.G West’s fine writing and clever plot reveal her mad sense of humour. I alternated between chuckling and sober reflection, but there is one place in this novel where I roared with laughter. I never give spoilers so you have to buy this book learn why!

Ms West has produced a beautifully written book, brimming with wry humour, and a cleverly woven mystery in this perfectly-paced novel. Highly recommended!

I am very pleased to see there is a follow-up Aggie Mundine novel, Dang Near Dead.
***

[Leslie aka StoreyBook Reviews · Rating 3 out of 5]

This book has good potential to become a great series. The main character, Aggie, is nearing 40 and isn't model thin (many of us can relate!) with a proclivity for trouble. She has gone back to school and is studying aging which tie in nicely with the column she writes and her desire to start working out. Aggie has three close friends: Meredith, her neighbor Grace and Sam, who she has been good friends with since she lived in Chicago. There is a LOT more to the Aggie and Sam story but I won't share any of that. You might be able to figure it out before it is disclosed about halfway through the book, but maybe not. I didn't guess!

Overall I enjoyed the book but felt a little lost in the beginning. For the first book in a new series, I expected more of a character set up at the beginning versus the middle of the book. I was also surprised to see Aggie jump into this mystery as to who killed Holly when she just met her. I also didn't realize that Aggie had that much of a desire to get involved in investigating homicides. As with most cozy mysteries, Aggie puts herself in harms way many times and is lucky to not get herself killed...but then it wouldn't be a series if she did die. The author does a good job of throwing a lot of possible murderers at the reader and managed to keep me from guessing who the killer might be from the list of suspects. I never suspected the killer.

We give this book 3 1/2 paws since I felt a little lost in the beginning and didn't think the book gave a good background on the characters until further into the storyline. I will be reading the second book and feel like now that I have a handle on the characters that it won't be as hard to understand the back story of their lives.

originally reviewed for StoreyBook Reviews

[Mary Brown · Rating 4 out of 5]

Fit To Be Dead by Nancy G. West is the first book in the Aggie Mundeen Mystery series. I t is a good start in the series and I can see a lot of potential for future books.

Aggie Mundeen writes the column “Stay Young With Aggie” and decides she better get into better shape in case people find out that she is the author of the column. Her first day at the health club, she saves a girl, Holly, from drowning in the pool. But it seems that someone is very determined to kill Holly and is eventually successful. This does not sit well with Aggie and she decides to try to solve the murder. with the help of some friends and a love interest, she sets out to do just that. Will she be successful and will she find herself at a “dead” end?

The writing style flows smoothly and there is a lot of descriptive writing. The mystery was carried throughout the entire story and there were twists and turns and clues scattered throughout the story to help figure out the killer. I did not figure out who the killer was until it was revealed at the end.

The book has a lot of humor and I found myself laughing out loud in some spots. It seems to me it would be a bit difficult to write a story that is funny but also covers the seriousness of murder, but the author does a good job pulling that off.

I would recommend this book to anyone who enjoys a funny suspenseful mystery book. Grab this one and start the Aggie Mundeen Mystery series right.

I received a free copy of this book from NetGalley in exchange for a honest review. I would like to thank NetGalley and Henery Press for the opportunity to read this book.

[Yvonne · Rating 4 out of 5]

Retired from her banking job in Chicago, Aggie Mundeen moves to San Antonio where she is busy studying “Aspects of Aging” at the local university, and writing a column “Stay Young with Aggie”. She is unmarried, overweight, almost 40, and struggling to eat healthy and exercise.

Aggie is a realistic character who many readers can identify with. We’ve all been there, but most of us don’t find ourselves in the middle of a murder investigation while going to the gym. Just Aggie’s luck, she goes to the gym and immediately finds a woman in the pool, unconscious and near death. Aggie is sure this is no accident. However, she’s the only one thinking that way.

Sam Vanderhoven is a handsome detective she knew in Chicago. After he loses his wife and daughter in a horrific accident, he moves to San Antonio, too. Aggie seeks his help with the investigation, but then decides to do her own sleuthing. Although she’s also hoping her relationship with Sam will be a bit more deeper than this case.

Aggie is a “larger than life” character. She’s strong, funny and smart. This is the first book in the Aggie Mundeen series. It started off kind of slow for me, but then after a couple of chapters, it just took off. Humor is spread throughout the book…so many great one liners. I didn’t want to put it down. I’m looking forward to reading more in this series.



FTC Disclosure: The publisher provided me with a copy of this book to review for this blog tour. This did not influence my thoughts and opinions in any way. All opinions expressed are my own.

[Rhonda · Rating 3 out of 5]

3 1/2 STARS

Fit to Be Dead is an entertaining story. It keeps up the suspense of who the murder is till revealed. Some points of the plots seem weak. Has humor. the characters are likeable and would love to see more. Also clean read.

Aggie Mundeen is single and almost 40. She is back in college. She also writes a newspaper column Stay Young with Aggie. She wants to solve a murder to impress a detective.

Aggie goes to Fit and Firm Health Club to try and get in shape. She has a eventful first day. She meets a lot of guys who flirt with her. She also finds and help save a life Holly.

Weak part for me was that she thinks she might have been poisoned at a health club so she takes some containers of different things and takes to lab for testing. She does not tell her cop friend and warn people about products. Also she goes through a lot of steps to lose the cop watching her house to keep her safe.

Holly Holmgreen someone caused her to be almost killed in the swimming pool. If Aggie had not gone over to meet her and realized that she was not breathing and got her help so fast.
Aggie has lots of suspects for who she has offended lately.

The setting of the story is San Antonio, Texas. A lot of the story also happens to be the gym.

I would read another Aggie Mundeen mystery in the future.

I was given this ebook to read and in return agreed to give honest review of it by Net Galley and Henery Press

[Alannah Davis · Rating 2 out of 5]

I like the author's writing style and humor. However, the health club characters from staff to clientele, are the usual cliches - super fit instructors who try to force unfit clients into performing past their ability (no thought to possible lawsuits resulting from the inevitable injuries), meaty and brainless testosterone-driven men, a gorgeous woman reclining au natural for all to see with no particular reason for her to be sans clothing, etc. etc. etc. As a former fitness instructor who worked at several different clubs over a 10 year span, I want JUST ONCE to see a fiction author portray a health club realistically, without all the tired cliches. I'd yawn if I weren't so irritated.

Also, Aggie's reckless I-won't-bother-informing-the-cops-about-the-numerous-attempts-on-my-life attitude and the ludicrous situations in which she found herself, just didn't work for me. I wanted to like this book, but even an author's promising style can only carry an ultimately silly story so far. This seems to be self-published. Very unfortunate, since this story and the characterizations could have been so much more with the assistance of a good editor.

I see this book as a cautionary example of a talented author failing to do everything she could have done to provide the best possible representation of her vision. So we the readers are given the verbal version of my grandma's thrown-together "garbage soup" rather than her deliciously crafted borscht.

[SarahSmith · Rating 3 out of 5]

I received an ARC from Net Galley in exchange for an honest review.

I enjoyed the mystery of who killed Holly and why, but the premise of Aggie having to be the one to solve the crime is laughable. If Aggie were the main suspect in the murder and the police were focusing on her rather than the real killer I would probably be able to suspend my disbelief that an ex-banker from Chicago, who is now a graduate student in liberal arts in San Antonio would need to solve the crime. But the fact remains she does not have the training to investigate a crime, nor to protect herself, since the killer obviously has a grudge against her too. Plus she has a detective friend, Sam, on the San Antonio police force, but due to some flimsy reason, doesn't want to have him involved. Spoiler alert, that never works. The secondary characters all have these tragic losses, but the one I didn't understand was Meredith's loss of her husband Conrad. I felt that it should have had a more prominent spot in the story, but it seemed more of an aside. It would have made more sense to have it as he died accidentally not as some sort of murder investigation that Sam was a part of. Aggie was a bit pretentious, but that just made me like her more. This is my first book by Nancy G. West and I would like to see how the series plays out, so I will continue to check in on this series.

[Maria · Rating 4 out of 5]

Aggie, a thirty something columnist has decided to stay fit. It's not a bad decision if you want to have a long and healthy life... The only problem is that the first day of her new healthy life she saves a woman from being electrocuted in the pool, was it just an accident or an attempt to murder?
She will try to solve this mystery with her girlfriend Meredith but keep it hidden from her detective friend Sam.
This book will make you laugh about some of the strange things that happens in a gym. Because, you go to a gym to stay fit. However, should the employee be pretty and flirt with all the members? Or in the restaurant within the gym, should it be a must that all the food is vegetarian? Or all the uniforms had to be so ugly?
The Dear Aggie column is hilarious, the questions are quite strange, but Aggie always solve them with the perfect answer!
I enjoyed reading this book, with all the funny and dangerous situations Aggie has to face. The only problem I found is that it was like I missed some information of the characters, like there is more history about them that I didn't know. I hope I will know more of them in the next book "Dang Near Dead".

[Betty · Rating 4 out of 5]

This a good cozy mystery with a background of health clubs and views on aging. The protagonist Aggie is an interesting character that caught and held my attention as did Holly. Aggie has retired from her job at the bank and has moved to San Antonio. She has personal problems that explained in the book. The descriptions of places and events are good. At times there is too much information on a subject that cause me to lose interest. Two friends have to move the area also. Sam is a homicide officer who moved to the area after he lost his wife and child in an automobile accident. Meredith a close friend is attending graduate school. The first day at Fit and Firm, Aggie rescues Holly from shenanigans becomes close to her as Holly's problem mirrored hers. Later Holly is kill in a hit and run accident and Aggie becomes ill. Aggie is determined to find who kill Holly and why. Sam keeps telling her to let the professionals solve the case. Will Aggie find the answer before the killer succeeds. This is the first time for me for the author and I will read her again.

Full Disclosure: I received a free copy from Henrey Press through Netgalley for an honest review.

[Andrea Guy · Rating 4 out of 5]

Fit to be dead is a fun cozy mystery that will keep you turning the pages while Aggie, Sam and Meredith look for a killer, who may be after Aggie too.

Aggie, is a little bit hard to handle. She's in her thirties, but she acts like she should be in her 70s. She's so obsessed with growing old, and she's not old at all. She's also retired from a bank in Chicago. Again, I have to say WTF, because who retires in their 30s.

But the mystery is a fun one. Poor Holly. She nearly dies from being electrocuted in the club pool only to get mowed down by a car later.

That's when the crazy starts. Truth be told, if some of the things that started happening to Aggie, happened to me, I wouldn't have darkened the doorstep of that exercise club. Nope, no way. So I'll give her credit for being persistent.

There's a little side mystery going on too, involving Aggie's neighbor, and friend Grace. The end result of that mystery will definitely leave you a bit surprised. Ok, a lot surprised!

This was a really enjoyable read, even though I wasn't so keen on Aggie's personality. I do love the column she writes, and I hope it figures in more in the next books!

[Anne · Rating 1 out of 5]

I had the first three books in this series and started with #2, Dang Near Dead, since I forgot to send Fit to my kindle. Well, I never would have read the other two if I had started here. This was a DNF for me and, now that I think about because I'd read the other two and had as much of Aggie as I could stand.

I found Aggie immature and obsessed with both aging and her male best friend. I stopped reading when Aggie was breaking into the apartment of a woman who suffered a car accident. Why was she doing this? This was also after she heard the accident happen and had raced out and seen the victim. She was so terrorized about telling the cops about the minimal details that she may have been able to contribute that she sneaks away. What? Why? Come on!

I received a copy of this book from Netgalley in exchange for my honest review.

[Debbie · Rating 3 out of 5]

Thanks Net Galley and Henery Press for the chance to read this.

So far, because of the fact I moved to Texas 21 years ago and had to pick a Texas team because they didn't show University of Louisville games, i am not liking the fact that the main character's nickname is "Aggie". Then I find out that the author went to UT. I'm like "what?". then after reading it so far, she has a another main character who cracks Aggie jokes, so I'm like okay I will read on. Further opinion and review of this book will come after I finish reading it.

I found this book to be only slightly entertaining. Parts of it were pretty redundant for me and I found myself not enjoying it as much as I would have liked to.

[Lauri Rottmayer · Rating 4 out of 5]

This book was a lot of fun. Aggie has retired from working at a bank and has moved to San Antonio where she continues to write her Dear Aggie column about growing old gracefully.

She feels like it's time for her to walk the walk so she joins a gym and happens upon a girl in the pool who is blue. She pulls her out and the girl is revived only to be hit and killed by a car the following day.

Now Aggie can't stop trying to figure out who did it, nearly getting killed in the process.

The book is funny and suspenseful and since this is a series, I look forward to reading the next books. :-)

[Kathryn Moore · Rating 5 out of 5]

I love this book. This is a great read for anyone over 30 who wants a mystery and a laugh.
It's set at a gym. I am a regular gym goer, but the main character is definately not and her views on the gym made me laugh. There is a follow-up to this story and I will definetly read the next one and I will look for other books by this same auther and see if the same magic writting is there. I don't rate many books with 5 stars but this one held my interest without getting caught up in too many worthless details. I hate that.

[Rebecca · Rating 4 out of 5]

Aggie Mundine, a thirty-something health columnist, realizes that she really should get into shape before her readers discover that she is great at giving advice but not so great at taking her own. So, Aggie joins a gym and the reader gets to enjoy the hilarity that ensues.

This novel was a fun light read. It sort of straddles the "cozy mystery" and "chicklit" genres. Aggie and friends are funny and likeable. The light mystery woven in is well done but not overly complex. I'm happy to read the sequel, Dang Near Dead.

This book was provided free in exchange for an honest review.

[Kathy · Rating 3 out of 5]

Fit To Be Dead, which is the first book in the Aggie Mundeen Mystery series, by author Nancy G. West is a humourous cozy mystery.

This is a fast read. It is entertaining in spots. The health club setting was contemporary. I enjoyed the focus on aging and getting into shape. The problems of losing weight as we age was interesting to me.

A good cozy mystery featuring an amateur sleuth. I felt that it could use a little more editing.

[D.L. Williams · Rating 3 out of 5]

I was looking for a humorous mystery, so I enjoyed this book. I liked the main character Aggie, a giver of advice. She was tied in to the police via personal friend, which helps when you are trying to solve the mystery. Aggie joins a health center and one of the other members is almost killed, and then killed. Aggie sets her sights on solving the WHY.

[HENERY PRESS PUBLISHING]

“Fit to Be Dead has it all: intriguing characters that point to romance, an engrossing plot, a compelling puzzle and well-disguised clues—a fun read.” – L. C. Hayden, Award-Winning Author of the Harry Bronson Mystery series

[Karen Mccullough · Rating 5 out of 5]

Fit to Be Dead has it all: intriguing characters that point to romance, an engrossing plot, a compelling puzzle and well-disguised clues--a fun read.

[Kay · Rating 3 out of 5]

San Antonio mystery. Obsessed with trying to stay young.